title: Body size in early life and breast cancer risk in African American and European American women.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  There is growing evidence that body size in early life influences lifetime breast cancer risk, but little is known for African American (AA) women.
  
  
  METHODS
  We evaluated body size during childhood and young adulthood and breast cancer risk among 1,751 cases [979 AA and 772 European American (EA)] and 1,673 controls (958 AA and 715 EA) in the Women's Circle of Health Study. Odds ratio (OR) and 95 % confidence intervals (CI) were computed using logistic regression models while adjusting for potential covariates.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Among AA women, being shorter at 7-8 years compared to peers was associated with increased postmenopausal breast cancer risk (OR 1.68, 95 % CI 1.02-2.74), and being heavier at menarche with decreased postmenopausal breast cancer risk, although of borderline significance (OR 0.45, 95 % CI 0.20-1.02). For EA women, being shorter from childhood through adolescence, particularly at menarche, was associated with reduced premenopausal breast cancer risk (OR 0.55, 95 % CI 0.31-0.98). After excluding hormone replacement therapy users, an inverse association with postmenopausal breast cancer was found among EA women reporting to be heavier than their peers at menarche (OR 0.18, 95 % CI 0.04-0.79). The inverse relationship between BMI at age 20 and breast cancer risk was stronger and only statistically significant in EA women. No clear association with weight gain since age 20 was found.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Findings suggest that the impact of childhood height on breast cancer risk may differ for EA and AA women and confirm the inverse association previously reported in EA populations with adolescent body fatness, in AA women.
authors.affiliation: Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, 195 Little Albany St., New Brunswick, NJ, 08903, USA, elisa.bandera@rutgers.edu.
authors.forename: Elisa V
authors.initials: EV
authors.lastname: Bandera
authors.forename: Urmila
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Chandran
authors.forename: Gary
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Zirpoli
authors.forename: Gregory
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ciupak
authors.forename: Dana H
authors.initials: DH
authors.lastname: Bovbjerg
authors.forename: Lina
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Jandorf
authors.forename: Karen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Pawlish
authors.forename: Jo L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Freudenheim
authors.forename: Christine B
authors.initials: CB
authors.lastname: Ambrosone
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D015992:Body Mass Index; D049628:Body Size; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000209:etiology; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D020249:Hormone Replacement Therapy; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D009515:New Jersey / Q000453:epidemiology; D017698:Postmenopause; D011379:Prognosis; D012307:Risk Factors; D044465:White People / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D055815:Young Adult